Life in Texas Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

Red Goes to the Movies – Lucky

The great Harry Dean Stanton’s last major role is in Lucky which came out shortly after his death in September. The eponymous Lucky is 90 something a WWII veteran living in a small tidy house somewhere in Arizona. His well ordered life consists of morning Yoga exercises, a walk to the diner for coffee and crossword puzzle, watching game shows, tending his garden and have a couple of Bloody Marias at the local bar that he hasn’t been tossed from for smoking – and lots of smoking and the occasional phone call to a mysterious unknown person. He has no family, but his friends about town seem to like him. When he falls down one day, the local doctor (Ed Begley. Jr.) can find nothing wrong with him except that he is old which does get Lucky considering his own immortality. That is complicated when his tortoise loving friend Hank (David Lynch) is planning for his demise with the help of an estate planning attorney (Ron Livingston). From there, the movie descends into a conversation on death, the after-life or lack thereof and the contemplation of nothingness and run-away tortoises. There are a few enchanting moments such as where Lucky spontaneously breaks into singing “Volver” backed up by the Mariachi band and a local birthday party. That scene is out of character with Lucky and the rest of the movie. When Mrs. Red asked why that scene was included, Red’s only response was, “so you would be less likely to kill yourself when you left the theater.” It’s not a sad or happy movie and it ends on a Buddhist theme. Red gives it two stars and sideways thumb.